Manufacturing Demonstration Facility
Revitalizing US Manufacturing
The Manufacturing Demonstration Facility (MDF), established in 2012, is one of the Department of Energy’s designated user facilities focused on performing early-stage research and development to improve the energy and material efficiency, productivity, and competitiveness of American manufacturers. Research focuses on manufacturing analysis and simulation, composites and polymer systems, metal powder systems, metrology and characterization, machine tooling, large-scale metal systems, and robotics and automation.
The MDF is a 110,000 sq. ft. facility housing integrated capabilities that drive the development of new materials, software, and systems for advanced manufacturing. From binder jetting to 3D tomography to in situ monitoring, the MDF leverages a range of equipment and expertise focused on reducing the carbon footprint of the manufacturing sector, efficiently utilizing abundant and available domestic energy resources, and supporting the production of clean energy products that boost the nation’s economy.
Across its energy science and technology user facilities, ORNL delivers breakthroughs from generation to distribution and storage to end use, accelerating America’s transformation to a clean, efficient, flexible, and secure energy future.